Decisions
by Haley J. The Bat
Summary: Paige decides it's time for Spinner and her to go to the next level, but no one else seems to agree. Should she go with her instincts or listen to every one else?


It had been a perfectly normal afternoon until that one comment, haphazardly thrown by Hazel, halted not only Paige's day, but her entire life to that point.

"You and Spinner haven't done it yet?" she asked, laughing slightly as if Paige had made a joke.

The shoes Paige had picked up to inspect fell to the floor of the store in her moment of sheer panic. Not wanting Hazel to notice her reaction, she quickly bent to pick the shoes up and put them back in their box.

"I mean… how long have you two been going out?"

Paige shrugged casually. "A year?" she said it airily as if the length of time they'd been dating didn't matter. "Probably more if you consider we weren't officially together a lot of our relationship."

Hazel's eyes widened again. "Wow…"

"It's not that big of a deal." Paige smiled perkily. "After all, I'm doing something if I've still got him tied to my leash."

Hazel grinned. "You've got to be pretty good at that _something_ is all I can say." She shook her head again. "I still can't believe it. I just always assumed… but never mind."

The rest of their shopping trip had gone smoothly - at least, according to Hazel. But Paige was talented at fooling other people.

It hadn't even been the question that started the whole thing. They were just laughing, comparing prices on shoes, when Hazel made a joke about Spinner and Paige's sex life. Without thinking, Paige had quickly let her know there was no sex life to be joked about.

It was the casual manner of Hazel's joke and her shock at Paige's correction that had made Paige stop and think. Hazel and Jimmy had probably been doing it since their first date, if the self-satisfied smirk on Jimmy's face was any indication. Paige and Spinner had never even brought the topic up.

"Home or Spinner's?" Dylan asked when she got into his car in the mall parking lot. Hazel had gotten another ride.

Paige stared at Dylan stupidly for a few seconds. Did she really go to Spinner's so often that Dylan suggested that instead of home? "Um… I don't know," she said honestly, slinking into her seat and looking out the dusty front window.

"Pick, because I have a meet in an hour."

"Can you take me to Ashley's?" Paige winced at the question that had popped out of her mouth before she'd even thought it.

"Ashley's?" Dylan looked just as surprised. "Um… sure."

"I just need to talk to her," Paige said defensively. Even when she had hated Ashley, she still wanted to talk to her sometimes. There were things she talked to Hazel about and things she talked to Ashley about. Through and through, Ashley was still her best friend.

They arrived at her house a few minutes later, and she told Dylan she could walk home before getting out of the car and knocking on the front door.

A few minutes later Ashley answered it. "Hey, Paige. What are you doing here?"

"I don't know." Paige stared at her doormat. "I just… I wanted to see you. We never talk anymore, y'know?"

"Sure we do. More than… before."

"Not the way we used to. When we were younger and things were simpler." Paige knew she sounded uncharacteristic. The truth was that even though and perhaps because Ashley had been her best friend, she had also been her biggest competition. Sometimes it had been hard for Paige to be vulnerable around her.

"Come inside," Ashley said gently. "I'm alone right now."

Paige followed her into the living room and sat down stiffly on the couch. She wondered why everything seemed so hazy and sudden. Only a few minutes ago she'd been at the mall with Hazel, and now she was avoiding talking to Ashley. Just what was she avoiding saying though?

"What do you think of sex?"

Ashley's eyes widened. "Um… what?" 

"Sex. What do you think of it?" Paige settled back in her seat, feeling more comfortable now that she knew where this was going. Talking to Hazel about sex was different from Ashley. With Ashley she couldn't feel incompetent.

"I think it tears people apart," Ashley said softly.

"More than it brings them together?" A flash of Dean's bruising hand on her wrist made Paige shudder. "Maybe it does."

"I sort of understand why so many people wait until marriage to have sex. I don't think any of us are really ready for it," Ashley said.

"Hazel and Jimmy are having sex."

Ashley half-frowned. "Well, good for him."

"Manny and Craig had sex."

Ashley stiffened.

"I had sex," Paige finished, her voice low. "Once."

"When?" Ashley peered closely at her. "Is this about Spinner? Are you preg-?"

"No!" Paige interrupted. "I meant… I mean… Dean."

"Oh. Oh, Paige." Ashley reached out to take Paige's hand. "That wasn't sex; that was rape. Sex is about love. Or at least it should be."

"You always waited to have sex. You never thought you were ready," Paige pointed out, remembering the talks they used to have.

"I wasn't, and I… I don't think I am now even," Ashley said honestly. "I think there are a lot more important things than sex. I want to do a lot more with my life before I have to deal with the implications of it."

"I never felt that way," Paige said, looking at her lap. "I always flirted and showed too much skin. I was asking for it, but I was afraid of it." Another memory of Dean flashed through her memory, and she sucked in her breath. "Maybe I got what I deserved."

"Paige, no! No one, no matter what he or she does, deserves to be raped. What Dean did to you was wrong in more ways than I can even name right here." Ashley paused. "Are you having a relapse? I mean… I thought you had pretty much gotten over that. Did something new happen? Did you see Dean or something?"

"No." Paige wiped away a tear, glad that Ashley pretended she hadn't seen it. "God, no. It's just… it's Spinner."

"Is Spinner pressuring you to have sex with him?" Ashley asked coldly. "If he is, he's a total jerk. He ought-"

"No, it's not that either. Spinner's a perfect gentleman when it comes to stuff like that." Paige hugged her middle. "It's just that… well… Spinner and I have been dating for over a year."

"That doesn't mean you have to have sex with him."

"Maybe I want to. I just don't know." Paige met Ashley's blue eyes and felt hopeless. "I think I want to, but I can't. I keep thinking of how it can all go so wrong. Look at me and Dean. You and Craig."

"If all you can think of is it going bad, then you're not ready," Ashley said. She shrugged and smiled. "But I'm not really the one to tell you when you're ready, Paige. That's something you have to decide for yourself."

* * *

Spinner was using a spoon to reshape his thick mashed potatoes, happily minding his own business during lunch. Everyone else was still in line, and he was using the extra time to his advantage.

"Hey, man," Jimmy said, sitting down with his own tray.

"Dude," Spinner mumbled back, attention focused on the sculpture he was creating. "How was your day?"

"Good. Yours?"

"Eh."

"What are you doing?"

"Does it look like a guitar?" Spinner asked, pushing his tray towards Jimmy contemplatively.

"Maybe. Use your fork to make strings."

Spinner grinned at Jimmy's ingenious and ran his fork across the neck of the guitar. "Now?"

Jimmy arched an eyebrow. "Pretty good. It's too bad you have to eat it now."

Spinner shrugged and destroyed his mashed potato guitar with a single bite. After swallowing he decided it hadn't been worth it.

He was efficiently distracted because just then Hazel and Paige came over to the table, talking animatedly. Spinner watched Paige as she sat next to him, transfixed by her. In all the time they'd been together, he still couldn't believe she'd chosen him. He was just… Spinner. He wasn't smart, talented, athletic, or cute. She could have anyone.

Paige tossed her hair over one shoulder and smiled at him. With a sparkle in her eye, she placed one hand on his thigh. Spinner froze, his entire body focused on that one little hand, so high on his thigh… so close…

"So how do you think we're going to do at the match tonight?" Paige asked casually. Spinner had a moment to wonder at her ability to act so completely nonchalant.

"We're gonna rock," Jimmy said self-assuredly. "Are you working tonight, Spinner, or are you going to be there?"

Spinner jumped when Paige squeezed his thigh and realized someone must have said something to him. She removed her hand, and he almost groaned aloud. "Uh… what?"

"Do you work tonight?" Jimmy rolled his eyes.

"Do I?" Spinner thought hard, trying to chase away the urgent need to get Paige to put her hand back. "Um, yeah. I think so."

"Oh."

Paige frowned at him. "You have to work so much lately. I never see you outside of school."

"Friday," he blurted out, one word that instantly popped in his mind. "I don't have to work Friday night, remember? I asked for it off because my parents are going away for a romantic weekend."

"Oh, right." Paige looked down at her food quickly, a slight blush on her cheeks.

Spinner realized how his comment could be taken. Even though he would really love for _that_ to happen, he knew it probably wasn't. Not that it bothered him. Being with Paige was enough right now; he didn't want her to think he was pressuring her into _being_ with him.

"Are you having a party?" Jimmy asked.

"No," Paige said quickly, shocking Spinner at her vehemence.

"Oh, right." Jimmy's lips curled into a smirk. "It's _that_ kind of night."

"No, it's not," Spinner defended. He was getting tired of Jimmy's self-righteousness. Ever since he started doing Hazel he thought he was all experienced.

"It's not?" Paige looked at him with a smirk. "How do you know, Spinner?"

Spinner felt his jaw drop, and his eyes fell to her body so close to his. Paige was just playing with his mind though. She probably didn't want Jimmy and Hazel to know that she didn't have sex.

Jimmy hooted softly. "Go, Spinner," he teased.

Spinner just glared at him, wishing he was alone with Paige so he could ask her if she was for real. Because if so… he really needed to get Kendra out of the house.

* * *

Paige had spent a long time thinking about her and Spinner, especially after she'd hinted that they might do more than kiss that weekend. During the basketball game she'd been entirely on autopilot. Luckily it called for such a fake attitude that no one really noticed.

Thursday after school she had already decided that she would give it a go. Using her rape as an excuse was getting old. After all, she'd never actually had a flashback when she and Spinner had been making out. Spinner was different. When he touched her, she knew he cared. He deserved her complete and utter trust. It was unfair for her to make him wait.

"I don't even think they allow people under eighteen in here," Hazel whispered as they came up to a sexy boutique with flashy underwear in the front window.

"Then act like you're eighteen," Paige said breezily, opening the door and stepping in as if she'd been there a thousand times before. Honestly she was a little thrown by the inside. There was so much red and black, the colors jumping out at her and almost hurting her eyes. There were racks of underwear, bras, and other negligees that almost made her blush. To top it off, one whole wall was filled with what appeared to be sex toys and oils.

"Have you ever been in here before?" she whispered to Hazel. Hazel just shook her head, looking dazedly around the store.

"May I help you?" a woman asked, coming up to them with a cheesy smile on her face.

Paige tensed, expecting the woman to tell them to leave. "Um… well, actually yes. My boyfriend and I have finally come to this final step, and I want to look amazing for him. What… um, what do you recommend?"

The salesclerk, whose nametag indicated her name was Liz, smiled knowingly. "Where should I begin?" she joked. She looked Paige up and down for a moment, making the teen feel uncomfortable. "Well, I have a few ideas. Generally you'll want something to accentuate your own assets rather than something that looks sexy. No matter what you're wearing, if it makes you look good, it will look good, too."

Paige nodded along. She'd come across that before in other clothes. Even the ugliest shirts could look cute once they were on a person.

Liz spent the next half hour showing her bra and panty sets until Paige finally settled on a see through lacy one in pinks and oranges. After trying on the bra, she decided it was definitely a keeper.

"Now that that's over with, are there any oils or toys I could interest you in?" Liz asked, leading her over to the back wall.

Paige sat in shock at some of the things before her. "Um…"

"It's a bit overwhelming, I know. We have a large selection," Liz said smugly. She picked up a vial and handed it to Paige. "This is our most popular oil. Or do you have a favorite scent?"

"Do you have… something spicy?" Paige asked finally after smelling the oil and not being too impressed.

"This one is a mixture of cloves and roses. What do you think?" Liz handed her a pink vial that Paige sniffed.

"It's perfect!" Paige smiled at Hazel, who still looked rather shocked. "Do you think you and Jimmy might like one?"

Hazel opened her mouth slightly, then smiled in a sex vixen way. "I think that's a fabulous idea, Paige," she said, reaching for a green one and sniffing it.

Hazel took another few minutes finding the perfect scent, and they finally went to the counter. Paige didn't blink twice at the outrageous price, just held out her credit card and hoped her parents didn't look at the bill too closely next month.

Once they were out of the store, Paige wanted to giggle like a schoolgirl but stopped herself. She was going to have sex with Spinner, and she needed to act a little more mature.

"Ice cream?" Hazel suggested.

"God, yes!" Paige exclaimed, hooking her arm through Hazel's and leading her down the sidewalk towards an ice cream stand.

* * *

Friday night Spinner was doing something he had hadn't been known to do for years: cleaning his room. It wasn't so much cleaning as throwing all of his junk in his closet and hoping Paige wouldn't find a reason to look in there.

He wanted to wash his sheets and blankets, but he didn't know how. With a huge sigh of resolve, he gathered everything in his arms and went to knock on Kendra's door.

Kendra opened it and gave him a curious once over. "Why do you have all your bed things in your arms?"

"I… um… I wanted you to show me how to wash them," Spinner muttered, trying not to meet her eyes.

"You want me to show you how to wash?" she repeated incredulously.

"Yeah, so?" Spinner felt his anger rise. It was none of her business anyway! "It probably isn't that hard. Couldn't you just show me really quick?"

Kendra's voice softened. "I guess. Come on."

They walked downstairs silently, and once in the washroom she turned on one of the machines and poured out detergent. "I'm just going to do this for you, because I don't think this is really about teaching you how to wash your clothes."

Spinner wondered if he was blushing. "It's not," he admitted, figuring it was okay to be honest with Kendra.

"And what is it about?" She took the sheets and put them in the washer. "Something to do with Mom and Dad being gone tonight?"

"Something like that." Spinner pushed the blanket in as far as it could go and looked at her sheepishly. "Speaking of that, Kendra… do you think you have a friend or something who you might want to stay with tonight?"

"Oh, really?" Kendra put her hands on her hips. "Just what are you planning on doing here tonight, Spin? Are you going to have a party or something, because-"

"Paige," Spinner interrupted, looking at the floor. "Paige is going to come over, and she hinted…"

Kendra paused. "Well, okay. But I just want to remind you that Paige Michalchuck is notorious for hinting at things, not going through with them."

Spinner glared at her angrily. "There are things you don't know about Paige."

"I'm sure there are," Kendra muttered, leaving the room. "Let me just call a few people to see if anyone will take me."

Spinner watched her go, wishing they hadn't had this conversation at all. It wasn't like he really expected Paige to… but there was enough of a chance that he wanted to be prepared.

* * *

Paige paced her room about twenty times before Dylan came in to see what was going on. He leaned against the doorway with crossed arms and an arched eyebrow.

Instantly she froze. "What?"

"Why don't you tell _me_?"

"There's nothing to tell." Paige crossed her arms in mirror of his. "And even if there was, it would be _none_ of your business."

"Ashley's on the line. She wanted to see if you could go shopping with her."

Paige went to the phone and snatched it up, wondering why Dylan looked so smug. "Ash?"

"Hey, Paige. Your brother was acting really weird on the phone," Ashley said.

"Hold on a sec." Paige put her hand over the mouthpiece. "Why is it such a big deal that Ashley wants to go shopping with me?"

"Because, little sister, it seems that Ashley had no idea whatsoever that you were going to spend the night with her tonight." With one last smirk, Dylan turned from her doorway and left.

Paige groaned and put the phone back to her mouth. "I'm sorry about him. He can be such a loser sometimes."

"Anyway, do you want to go shopping with me?"

"I can't." Paige went and closed her bedroom door. "Look, I'm using you as an alibi tonight. That's why Dylan was acting so weird. I told my parents I was spending the night with you."

"Oh." Ashley didn't hide the note of disappointment in her voice. "Where are you going?"

"Don't worry, it's not a big party that nobody invited you to," Paige assured her, recognizing Ashley's hurt. She could tell that sometimes Ashley wished she wasn't as foreign to the popular scene as she used to be. "I'm going to spend the night at Spinner's."

"Oh." This time it came out more intrigued. "I suppose I don't want to be around for that one."

"Not on your life." Paige sat down on the edge of her bed and couldn't take the smile out of her voice. "His parents are out of town, and I decided that tonight is… the night. You know?"

"Yeah, I guess."

"Not that I didn't take your lesson the other day to heart. I know you're against underage sex. But… Spinner and I have different circumstances."

"Just be careful, Paige. Okay?"

"Duh. I already bought condoms and everything."

"Not just about that. Be careful about yourself okay?" Ashley said gently.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean that when I was reading about rape victims for that song, I read some things that you might want to know. A lot of girls have flashbacks when they try to become intimate again."

Paige felt her heart squeeze painfully. "I love Spinner," she whispered.

"Doesn't matter. Rape is a… a hard thing to go through. Just be prepared, and don't force yourself to go through with it if you start to have doubts."

Paige felt her eyes sting with tears, and she felt anger well up inside towards Ashley. Why did she have to go and ruin this for her? "For your information, Spinner and I have gotten pretty far before, and I haven't had one flashback. Not once."

"I didn't say you would. I just said to be prepared," Ashley said a little defensively. "Whatever. I was just trying to help."

"Well, don't! It's none of your business anyway. I don't see why you're giving me advice on sex when you're so obviously incompetent." Paige rolled her eyes.

"What are you trying to say?"

"What I'm saying is that if Spinner had been screwing around with someone else, I would have known."

A loud click let Paige know that Ashley had hung up on her. For a second she almost felt guilty, but she shook her head and stood up. There was no point in feeling guilty if what she said was true. Besides, Ashley had no right sticking her nose in other people's business.

"That was a little harsh."

Paige jumped and looked up to see Dylan at her doorway again. "How long have you been there?"

"Long enough to piece together what I already had figured out." Dylan shrugged. "So you and Spinner, huh?"

Paige bit her tongue to keep herself from snapping at her brother. If anyone could sabotage this, it was Dylan, and she needed to stay on his good side. "Yes, brother dear."

"It may be tough for me not to let this one slip at the dinner table," Dylan said with a sigh. "I'm just so _excited_."

"Dylan, please." Paige grabbed his arm pleadingly. "I've spent all week getting ready for this. Don't ruin it."

Dylan squinted at her like he couldn't figure her out. Suddenly he pulled her in for a hug. "Don't worry, Paige. I wouldn't tell on you," he said softly, stroking her hair.

Paige let herself go limp against him, let him old her up for a little while.

"Thanks, Dylan. I owe you big time."

"Do you think you're making the right decision?"

Paige pushed him away suddenly, angry at everyone for questioning it. "I don't doubt any of my decisions."

"And that's gotten you into trouble before."

"Not this time. Not with Spinner," she said. "I'll see you later, Dylan. Since you're in on my plan, how do you feel about driving me over to his house?"

"I really don't want to, but I will. I'm going over to Marco's later anyway."

Paige shot him a smirk. "Oh, really?"

"Not a word, Paige. Not a word."

Paige was just about to ignore his command and say more than a few words, but the phone rang. Without skipping a beat, she belly flopped on her bed and picked it up. "Hello?" she asked casually as if she hadn't just performed an Olympic feat to get there.

"Hey."

"Hi," Paige said, instantly recognizing Spinner's voice. She glared at Dylan and motioned for him to leave the room. He stuck his tongue out at her and left.

"So, listen. My parents are gone now. Kendra… she went with them. They're dropping her off at a friend's house to spend the night."

Paige felt her stomach tighten. "Isn't that convenient?"

"I asked her to," Spinner said, sounding embarrassed. "If it bothers you-"

"Spin, it's perfect. Dylan's driving me over. Why don't you order a pizza or something?"

"Okay. See you in a little while."

"Yeah."

Paige hung up the phone and laid on her bed for another minute, soaking in the situation. They were really going to do this. Everything was set up, nobody would know… except Ashley and Dylan, but they didn't matter.

She got up to lock the door and turned around, looking at her room, wondering what she needed to do. The pink bag from the boutique yesterday caught her eye, and she opened it to see the items she'd bought yesterday.

Without another moment of hesitation, she pulled off her clothes to put her new bra and panty set on.

* * *

Dylan stopped in front of Spinner's house and looked at her expectantly.

"What?" Paige asked. She already had enough inner turmoil, and she didn't need Dylan to add more to it.

"Just… if you want me to pick you up early or something, call."

"Thanks," she said sarcastically, opening the door. "But I won't."

She didn't turn around again when she heard him vroom off into the distance. Straightening her shoulders, she walked up to the front door and knocked assuredly. No need to let Spinner know she was nervous.

A minute later Spinner opened the door and stared at her as if in awe. "Hey."

"Hi." Paige pushed her way through the door and heard it shut without turning around. "So… where should I put my stuff?"

"You brought stuff?" Spinner sounded surprised. "In my room."

"Okay." Paige wanted to say something sarcastic, but truthfully she felt just as nervous as Spinner had just sounded. "Did you order food?"

"Yeah." Spinner walked with her to his room. "But I thought pizza wasn't very classy. I ordered seafood and stuff. Isn't it a delicacy?"

"Depends. What did you order?" She smiled, touched by the thought behind such a small action.

"Oysters." Spinner took her bag and put it on the floor by the doorway.

Paige smirked. "Any particular reason?"

"Just something I heard about them."

Paige looked around at his room for the first time, shocked. "You cleaned! I think this is the first time I've seen it clean since… well, since I met you." She spun around and wrapped her arms around his neck. "That's so sweet."

Spinner smiled and leaned his head down to kiss her softly. She pulled him closer and easily opened his lips with her tongue. It seemed suddenly though that neither of them knew quite what to do. His hands stayed firmly at her waist, and the only exploring they did was mouth to mouth. Normally they attacked each other without abandon, sot his was pretty tame.

Paige pulled away after a minute, and he let her go. "Maybe we should wait until later."

"Yeah. At least until the food gets here," he agreed, his eyes greedily looking over her body. "We have the whole night, and probably part of tomorrow, too."

"Let's go watch TV until the delivery guy comes, hmm?" She smiled at him and took his hand as she walked to the living room.

They snuggled together on the couch, and Spinner handed her the DVD remote. "I already put something in."

Paige smiled falsely, hoping he hadn't picked up some dirt bike movie. After she pressed the on button though, the screens showed her all time favorite teen movie. She squealed happily and kissed him on the mouth, thinking about how great a boyfriend she had.

The movie had been on for quite awhile when somebody knocked on the door. Spinner told her to stay put and disappeared for a few minutes, coming back with a plastic bag of delicious-smelling food.

Paige paused the movie and opened the bag up while he went to go get plates and silverware. The bill was sticking out, and she picked it up to inspect the price. Her heart nearly stopped when she saw how much he'd spent.

"Here are some plates." Spinner set them on the table. "What's wrong?"

"You spent all this on me?" Paige asked, holding the receipt out.

Spinner shrugged. "I wanted it to be special."

Paige launched herself in his arms, attacking his lips with her owns. At first it was hard to find a place, but then suddenly their bodies fit together perfectly. He daringly let his hand move up to her neck to angle her face better against hers.

She pulled away abruptly, remembering the food. "Maybe we should wait until after the oysters," she suggested.

"Yeah," he agreed, panting too hard to say anything else.

Paige started to dip out the food, pausing to inhale its scent again. Spinner had definitely gotten his money's worth, because she could tell already this was going to be one of the best things to ever enter her mouth.

After putting the movie on again, they began to eat. She ate the shrimp first since she knew already that she liked it. Once they'd eaten everything else, Spinner reopened the one box they'd left alone.

"Are you ready for something new?"

She eyed it as he opened it and pulled out a round, batter-dipped oyster. "It's fried."

"I figured anything fried has got to taste good," Spinner said, smiling shyly as he held it out.

Feeling daring, she leaned forward, locking her eyes with his, and took it from his hand with her teeth. As she chewed, she delighted in the lusty gaze he still had trained on her.

Spinner ate one, too, and grimaced. "It tastes like fried water."

"Maybe it's an acquired taste." Paige reached for another one and ate it, trying not to grimace as well. All the rich people liked oysters, so why shouldn't she?

"Very acquired." Spinner picked another one up and sighed. "This better be worth it."

Paige laughed and turned her attention back to the movie. It was about to be over, and once it was, she and Spinner were probably going to have sex. Even though she was probably the most confident girl at Degrassi High, this thing that everyone else seemed so natural at terrified her.

The movie ended on a happy note, and Spinner and Paige sat on the couch watching the credits roll down. Paige told herself it was only because she loved the song, not because she was avoiding.

When there was nothing more to watch, Paige finally pressed the power button and watched the screen turn black.

"I better clean this up," Spinner said, getting up and picking up the trash and plates.

Paige watched him silently as he left the room and took a deep, cleansing breath. This was Spinner, and she'd already decided they were both ready. No need for doubts now.

With that in mind, she went to his room alone, figuring he'd follow her there. She opened up her bag, pulled out the condoms and oil, and set them on the bed. Maybe now that everything was out in the open they wouldn't be so awkward. Thinking back on dinner, she pulled a breath mind out of her purse and popped it in her mouth. No need to have oyster breath the first time she did it. That was something one probably wouldn't forget.

"Paige?" Spinner came into the room looking confused. His eyes must have fallen on the bed because he froze and stared there. "Are those…?"

"Yeah. A-and oil," she said, picking it up and opening the top. "I bought this at the store yesterday. It's supposed to be… stimulating."

Spinner breathed in. "Smells good," he choked out.

"Turn around now."

"Why?"

"Just do it. I don't… I don't want to get undressed with you staring at me," Paige admitted.

"We could get undressed as we go along."

"I want you to see me in my new outfit though."

"Outfit?" Spinner seemed appropriately intrigued and finally turned around.

Paige took off her shirt and made sure her bra was on right. It felt weird to have such a see-through bra on. It was definitely racier than any others she owned. She folded her shirt and placed it on his computer chair. Then she shimmied out of her skirt. A brief moment of panic made her wonder if she should have gone for the thong instead of the boy short panties. Finally she took her sandals off and straightened her shoulders, trying to decide if her face was alluring enough as she cleared her throat.

Spinner turned around quickly, and his eyes dropped to look over her whole body in a way that made her spine tingle. "God, Paige. You look amazing," he whispered, stepping forward. He stopped, took another step forward, obviously worried about what to do.

"Take your shirt off."

Spinner gulped noticeably, but he braved it out and took his shirt off carefully, throwing it on the floor.

Paige looked at his chest. He certainly had muscled up in the past year. It hadn't mattered to her though. She still had liked him when he was pudgy.

"Can I kiss you now?" Spinner asked, his voice abnormally low.

She nodded, and he was on her in a second. He kissed her roughly, pulling her against him like he wanted her as close as possible. Kissing him back, she thought how this roughness was so unlike the way Dean had handled her… Paige quickly pushed that thought out of her head. Ashley's talk earlier was why she'd thought of Dean. If only Ashley hadn't put the idea in her head.

Paige felt the back of her legs hit the bed, and she pulled away for a second to pick up the condoms and oil. Spinner's eyes were practically black, and he loomed over her as if ready to strike at any moment. Slithering up the bed until her head was on the pillows, she set the items on his nightstand and beckoned him with her finger.

Spinner crawled over her, covering her like a blanket, and kissed her tenderly. She wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer. It was okay to have his heavy weight on top of her. Instead of hurting, it felt like he was protecting her.

She tore her lips from him for a second. "Spinner, I love you."

He latched onto her neck. "I love you, too, Paige. I didn't even know how much until tonight." He pulled away to meet her eyes. "Why me?"

"What?"

"Why me?" Spinner repeated, settling his weight on his elbows and looking at her curiously. "Why did you choose me out of everyone else? You could have anyone, but you chose me."

Paige felt tears come to her eyes, and it took all her will not to cry at his words. "You mean you don't feel worthy?" Paige kissed him briefly. "I picked you because… because maybe I sensed deep down that you were what I wanted. And you are… you're everything I want and even more." She nuzzled his neck, thinking that she just couldn't believe he'd stayed with her after all the terrible things she'd done.

Spinner moved to kiss her on the lips again, and one of his hands moved to cup her breast. For a split second Paige saw Dean, but this time there was no fear laced in the memory. Spinner would never hurt her. Spinner wasn't Dean.

With that revelation, Paige arched into his hand and kissed him harder. This was going to be the best night of her life, and nobody, especially not Dean, was going to ruin it for her.

* * *

The next morning Spinner woke up with Paige snug in his embrace, her naked back pressed against his front. He decided this was the best feeling in the world, and there was no way he could live without doing this again.

After a few moments of bliss, he shifted to see what time it was. It had been his plan to be fully dressed watching TV in the living room by eleven. That way if his parents came home they wouldn't have anything to be suspicious about.

His shifting must have woken Paige up because she gave a startled gasp and flipped onto her back. She instantly relaxed when she saw Spinner, a slow, sexy smile coming on her face. "Good morning."

He forgot about the time and leaned down to kiss her. Before he'd even had a chance to properly kiss her, she pushed him away with a distasteful look on her face. "Eugh. Now I know why people speak of morning breath in loathing."

"You don't taste like cherries either," Spinner mumbled, sitting up in bed and rubbing his eyes.

"It's ten thirty," Paige said, sitting up beside him and keeping the sheet tight around her chest. "What time are your parents getting home?"

"Soon probably. We'd better get dressed and stuff," Spinner groaned, putting a hand on his forehead. He wanted to stay here forever, morning breath and all.

"Should I go home?" Paige asked quietly.

Spinner turned to her, surprised. "No! I mean… don't you want to stay? We can watch TV and just hang out. Unless you don't want to."

"That sounds nice," Paige said. "I better get dressed though. Do I have time to take a shower?"

"Can you do it in half an hour?"

"For you? Maybe." She smiled, grabbed her bag, and headed towards the bathroom. "If we only have half an hour, maybe we should wait for a later date."

"For what?"

"Some sexy bathroom fun."

Spinner watched her bare backside as she left his room and was bombarded with the thought of having her in the shower. God, that would be heaven. Even more heaven than last night.

He smiled as he got out of bed and threw some clothes on, still unable to believe that Paige loved him. Honestly he didn't think about it that often, but then suddenly something she did or said would hit him in the stomach. Last night was the biggest blow he'd gotten.

A few times he'd sensed the fear in her eyes, and he figured she was remembering that guy that raped her. On one hand he'd wanted to give into the anger and kill Dean the next time he saw him. On the other hand he wanted Paige to know that he loved her, that he would never, ever hurt her. At any point last night she could have said no, and he would have stopped.

But she hadn't. They'd gotten through it together, and as they fell asleep, Spinner knew this wasn't the last time they would share each other's beds.

Once he was dressed and looking presentable, he went to the kitchen to make something for them to eat. It seemed like a gentlemanly thing to do at least, even if he hadn't actually cooked very much before.

Paige came in when he was putting the scrambled eggs on a plate. wrapped her arms around him from behind, her face pressed into his back.

"You made me breakfast."

"It's just scrambled eggs." He turned around in her embrace and kissed her softly, close mouthed so she wouldn't have to deal with his morning breath.

"You're the most perfect guy in the whole world," she whispered, letting go of him.

"I take it you enjoyed last night then," he said, attempting humor as they sat down with their food.

"Whatever gave you that idea?" She tossed her hair over one shoulder and poured orange juice from the pitcher he'd set on the table.

"We can do this again, right? Sometime… later?" Spinner took a huge bite of his eggs and tried not to sound so much like a guy.

"Oh, I'm counting on it," Paige said gravely.

The door opened then, and Spinner stiffened, wondering if his having breakfast with Paige would seem suspicious.

But it was Kendra who walked into the kitchen. "Hi, Paige."

"Hi," Paige said cheerfully.

Kendra looked at the table in shock. "Did you make food, Spinner?" She smiled at Paige. "You must be really good."

Spinner saw Paige's eyes widen, and he threw a chunk of egg at Kendra. "Go to your room. And next time don't come home so early."

Kendra left, but she had a smirk on her face all the same.

Paige started laughing, and he looked at her in surprise. "You aren't offended at what she said?"

"Nope."

He felt something nudge his foot and realized it was hers.

"Wanna go make out on the couch?" she suggested.

Spinner stared at her blankly for a moment before nodding so hard his head almost fell off. "Just let me clean up in here."

"I'll be waiting," Paige said, going to the doorway and stopping. "Uh, Spin?"

"Yes?"

"Thank you."

"Thank me?" Spinner just shook his head. "You're the one who brought the oil."

"That was fun, wasn't it?"

"I love you, Paige. I mean it. Not like… not like some stupid high school thing. I really do love you."

"Me, too, Spinner." Paige was actually blushing - he could see it rising on her cheeks before she turned around. "Now hurry up!"


End file.
